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Creative Writing Workbook PDF
Creative Writing Workbook PDF
BETTER TUITION
WORDS ABOUT
WINTER
A CREATIVE WRITING
WORKBOOK
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INTRODUCTION
In this creative writing workbook, we celebrate the beauty of a frosty morning, the
mystery of winter's long, dark nights and the warmth of a crackling log in the grate.
Winter is an exciting and inspiring time for many children. My aim in producing
these resources was to convert this excitement into a creative response through the
medium of guided exercises in poetry, prose and drama.
This resource is aimed at children in the age range of 8–12, though some of the
activities may also be suitable for older/ younger children.
Teachers may wish to display pages from the workbook on their IWBs, so I have
used some colour for fonts and images throughout the book, but if you're printing
this document, please be mindful of the environment and print in grayscale.
There are notes for teachers and other educators, but please get in touch if you
have any queries about this resource.
This workbook may be reproduced and used for classwork and homework. No part
may be sold.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
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CONTENTS
Page
Tips for creative writers …........................................................ 1
Story Prompt 1: The Night Visitors …....................................... 2
Story Prompt 2: The Wooden Box …........................................ 3
Story Prompt 3: The Snow Queen …........................................ 4
Winter Story: Template for Story Prompts ….................... 5 – 6
Writing to Describe 1: A Garden in Winter …......................... 7
Writing to Describe 2: A Log Fire …......................................... 8
Writing to Describe 3: The Polar Bear …............................... 9
Winter Words: Template for Writing to Describe ….......... 10 – 11
What is Poetry? …........................................................................... 12
Found Poetry: A Christmas Carol …......................................... 13
Found Poetry: Little Women …................................................... 14
Found Poetry: The Little Match Girl …..................................... 15
Found Poetry: The Little Match Girl Template …................. 16
Found Poetry: Using a Phrase Bank ….................................... 17
Found Poetry: Template …....................….................................... 18
Acrostic Poems …........................................................................... 19
Acrostic Poems Template............................................................ 20
Acrostic Poems Template............................................................ 21
Haiku …................................................................................................. 22
Haiku Template …............................................................................. 23
Tanka …................................................................................................ 24
Tanka Template................................................................................ 25
A Five-Senses Poem ….................................................................. 26
A Five-Senses Poem Snowflake Planner............................... 27
A Five-Senses Poem Template ….............................................. 28
The Art of Revising and Editing your Work …..................... 29-30
An Amazing Invention ….............................................................. 31-34
Designing a Storyboard …........................................................... 35-36
Writing a Script: 1 …........................................................................ 37
Writing a Script: 2 …....................................................................... 38
Notes for Teachers and Other Educators............................ 39-40
Appendix 1: Winter Word Bank …............................................... 41-42
Appendix 2: A Garden in Winter................................................. 43
Appendix 3: A Log Fire …............................................................... 44
Appendix 4: A Polar Bear …......................................................... 45
Appendix 5: The Night is Darkening Round Me...................... 46
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TIPS FOR CREATIVE WRITERS
1. There is no wrong way to write creatively. You
are in control, so be as imaginative as you like!
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Page 1
Story Prompt 1
Page 2
Story Prompt 2
It had been a quiet day in the toy shop and Amelia wasn't sorry to be
closing up. Time dragged when not many customers came in. It was
already dark at four o'clock – and so cold she could see her breath.
She'd just got her coat on when she heard the shop bell ring.
“I'm afraid we're cl-”
“This won't take a moment,” said a voice which came from immediately
behind her.
Amelia jumped in fright. She hadn't heard footsteps behind her. Turning,
she saw a very small man, no higher than her shoulders, dressed in
black robes and an old-fashioned top hat which was battered and
tattered and altogether ridiculous-looking.
“Do you know what you want to buy?” Amelia asked, still anxious to get
home. The man shook his head, with a slight smile.
“Nothing, my dear,” he said in a voice only just louder than a whisper. “It
is you who will want to buy from me.”
With that, he held up a carved wooden box.
Page 3
Story Prompt 3
In the evening when little Kay was at home and half undressed, he crept
up on the chair by the window, and peeped out of the little hole. A few
snowflakes were falling, and one of these, the biggest, remained on the
edge of the window-box. It grew bigger and bigger, till it became the
figure of a woman, dressed in the finest white gauze, which appeared to
be made of millions of starry flakes. She was delicately lovely, but all ice,
glittering, dazzling ice. Still she was alive, her eyes shone like two bright
stars, but there was no rest or peace in them. She nodded to the
window and waved her hand.
BY
Q
Page 5
Q
Page 6
Writing to Describe: 1
A Garden in Winter
1. Nouns
Picture a garden in winter. What items can you see, hear,
touch or even smell? Write at least five nouns below:
2. Adjectives
Which adjectives could describe a garden in winter? Write
at least five below:
3. Similes
A simile is a comparison of two things. e.g. 'Her smile was
as bright as the sun'. Try to come up with two similes to
use in your description of a garden in winter.
Page 7
Writing to Describe: 2
A Log Fire
1. Nouns
Picture a log fire. What items can you see, hear, or smell?
Write at least five nouns below:
2. Adjectives
Which adjectives could describe a log fire? Write at least
five below:
3. Onomatopoeia
Onomatopoeia describes words which name sounds, but
which also sound like the sound they name, e.g. 'buzz',
'whoosh', 'crack' and 'bang'. Try to come up with a
phrase which uses onomatopoeia to use in your
description of a log fire.
Page 8
Writing to Describe: 3
1. Verbs
Picture a polar bear. What would s/he do? What would
s/he hear, see, think, eat? Write at least five verbs
below:
2. Adjectives
Which adjectives could describe a polar bear? Write at
least five below:
3. Metaphor
A metaphor is a comparison of two things, but without
using 'as' or 'like' e.g. 'Her hands were two frozen cubes
of ice'. Try to come up with a metaphor to use in your
description of a polar bear.
Page 9
WINTER WORDS
BY
Page 10
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Page 11
What is Poetry?
Do you have a favourite poem? Write its name here, as well as any lines
from it you can remember. What do you like about the poem?
Do you know the names of any poets? Write them here. If you don't
know the names of any poets, research in the library or online.
True or False?
Write 'T' for 'true' or 'F' for 'false' after each statement.
Page 12
Found Poetry: A Christmas Carol
Once upon a time -- of all the good days in the year, on Christmas Eve -- old Scrooge
sat busy in his counting-house.It was cold, bleak, biting weather: foggy withal: and
he could hear the people in the court outside go wheezing up and down, beating their
hands upon their breasts, and stamping their feet upon the pavement stones to warm
them.The city clocks had only just gone three, but it was quite dark already -- it had
not been light all day: and candles were flaring in the windows of the neighbouring
offices, like ruddy smears upon the palpable brown air.The fog came pouring in at
every chink and keyhole, and was so dense without, that although the court was of the
narrowest, the houses opposite were mere phantoms.To see the dingy cloud come
drooping down, obscuring everything, one might have thought that Nature lived hard
by, and was brewing on a large scale.
Found Poem:
Cold, bleak: dark already,
Light and candles upon the air.
Keyhole phantoms drooping
Obscuring Nature.
Found poems help you come up with images you would never have
thought of. What picture does this found poem paint in your mind?
Sketch it here:
Page 13
Found Poetry: Little Women
This extract is from Little Women by Louisa May Alcott. As you can see,
I have chosen some words to make another found poem, which you can
read below.
"As for you, Amy," continued Meg, "you are altogether too particular and prim. Your
airs are funny now, but you'll grow up an affected little goose, if you don't take care. I
like your nice manners and refined ways of speaking, when you don't try to be
elegant. But your absurd words are as bad as Jo's slang."
"If Jo is a tomboy and Amy a goose, what am I, please?" asked Beth, ready to share
the lecture.
"You're a dear, and nothing else," answered Meg warmly, and no one contradicted
her, for the 'Mouse' was the pet of the family.
As young readers like to know 'how people look', we will take this moment to give
them a little sketch of the four sisters, who sat knitting away in the twilight, while the
December snow fell quietly without, and the fire crackled cheerfully within. It was a
comfortable room, though the carpet was faded and the furniture very plain, for a
good picture or two hung on the walls, books filled the recesses, chrysanthemums and
Christmas roses bloomed in the windows, and a pleasant atmosphere of home peace
pervaded it.
Found Poem:
Goose, goose
In the twilight.
Snow fell,
fire crackled.
Christmas roses.
Home.
Page 14
Found Poetry: The Little Match Girl
It was terribly cold; it snowed and was already almost dark, and evening came on, the
last evening of the year and gloom a poor girl, bare headed and barefoot, was walking
through the streets. When she left her own house she certainly had had slippers on;
but of what use were they? They were very big slippers and her mother had used
them till then, so big were they. The little maid lost them as she slipped across the
road, where two carriages were rattling by terribly fast. One slipper was not to be
found again, and a boy had seized the other, and run away with it. He thought he
could use it very well as a cradle, some day when he had children of his own. So now
the little girl went with her little naked feet, which were quite red and blue with the
cold. In an old apron she carried a number of matches, and a bundle of them in her
hand. No one had bought anything of her all day, and no one had given her a farthing.
C
Next Steps:
You can choose any page of text to make a found poem.
Page 15
THE LITTLE MATCH
GIRL
i took a bottle from in the middle of the night place where ferries depart
a human being is another in the precincts of the died in the palace in 1616
add tomatoes and heat looking towards the dead love is what matters
approached her in surprise i escaped, and three times fonts, gargoyles, eagle
with the blanket still the oldest inhabitant quanta of energy leap
shivering miserably a glass ball the size of prickled with the bitter chill
wild rabbits in the a little jar in her pocket tears began to run down
and woe to any cat with little puppets on stage and the light shines out
Page 17
FOUND POETRY
BY
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Page 18
Acrostic Poems
Acrostics are fun poems in which the first letter of each line
spells out a word.
Dazzling,
Enchanted,
Celebrations.
Everyone
Merry.
Bright
Evergreens,
Resplendent.
You can also write longer lines
Line 1 5 syllables
Line 2 7 syllables
Line 3 5 syllables
Here is an example:
Try to write your own winter haiku, choosing from the following
themes:
Line 1 (5 syllables)
Line 2 (7 syllables)
Line 3 (5 syllables)
Line 1 (5 syllables)
Line 2 (7 syllables)
Line 3 (5 syllables)
Page 22
Haiku
by
vprznow Page 23
Tanka
A tanka is longer than a haiku, with five lines, but still follows a set
pattern:
Line 1 5 syllables
Line 2 7 syllables
Line 3 5 syllables
Line 4 7 syllables
Line 5 7 syllables
Here is an example:
Snow fell heavily
On the pathways and mountains
But I was alone
Shivering in the night air
Waiting for morning to come
Tankas often focus on emotion as well as nature. Write your own winter
tanka, choosing from the following themes:
Line 1 (5 syllables)
Line 2 (7 syllables)
Line 3 (5 syllables)
Line 4 (7 syllables)
Line 5 (7 syllables)
Page 24
tanka
by
Page 25
A Five Senses Poem
Autumn
Autumn is a silver star on a dark night
It is a wild wind, whistling through the streets
It is a new pair of gloves, snug and warm
It is the smell of a bonfire, blazing in the dark
Autumn is the first taste of apple pie, fresh from the oven
• Snow
• Winter
• New Year
• Darkness
• Fire
Page 26
A Five-Senses Poem
Title:
Sight:
Sound:
Taste: Touch:
Smell:
Page 27
a Five-Senses Poem
by
Page 28
The Art of Revising and Editing your Work
Never stop at just one draft: Roald Dahl used to write and rewrite, sometimes
changing his stories 150 times! We are going to look at how to change a
piece of writing.
Task: read 'The night is darkening round me' by Emily Brontë. Some of the
words have been removed. Choose words to fill the gaps, using the words on
the following page. You may also use your own words to fill the gaps.
You may like to cut these out, so that you can move them around the poem easily.
Task:
Choose a recent piece of writing. If you read it carefully, you will see that there are
changes you could make to improve it. Annotate it with your new ideas, then write out your
second draft.
You may also notice errors of punctuation or spelling which passed you by the first time
you wrote it. You can take the opportunity to correct these while you are writing your
second draft.
You may even decide to make your piece of writing shorter, by removing some words. This
is sometimes a good idea. Think about whether all the words you have used are
necessary to convey the ideas of effects you were aiming for. If some of your words or
phrases are unnecessary, you may remove them.
Page 30
An Amazing Invention
Winter is a wonderful season but it is cold and the nights are long and
dark. Pavements are slippery and the trees are bare. It seems like
everyone has caught a cold or the flu! If you want to go shopping, you
will be waiting in long queues as the shops are packed with throngs of
eager customers.
These are just some of the problems of winter. A good invention is one
which solves a problem. Fill in the five-minute problem-solver below with
ideas for inventions to solve each problem.
FIVE-MINUTE PROBLEM-SOLVER
Page 31
Now choose an invention. It can be one from your five-minute problem-
solver or you might think of another one. In any case, it has to solve
one of winter's problems.
Use this page to help you fill in your own spider diagram.
Page 32
Fill this spider diagram with your ideas.
Page 33
Do you need inspiration? This example may help.
It lights up the
darkness with a
Winter days are
golden light that's
short and dark.
just like sunshine.
People miss the
summer sun.
It's portable
Families with and it doesn't
young children need
would buy this, electricity or
so that they batteries.
The
could go to To operate,
the park after simple tap it
4pm. three times.
SunOrb
The SunOrb
It's made of
is only
1,001 crystals
available to
with special
buy online.
light-
reflecting
It is a multi- mirrors.
faceted, egg-
shaped object
which fits in the It costs £699.99
palm of your
hand. It is silvery-
gold in colour.
Page 34
Designing a Storyboard
1 2 3
Sad children, staring out We see the garden the Dad appears behind the
of window, which is children are looking out children. He takes the
covered in raindrops. at: it is dark. A rusted SunOrb out of his pocket
swing creaks in the and beckons the children
gloom. to follow him.
Music: “Dark was the Music: “Dark was the Music fades out.
night, cold was the night, cold was the Dad: “Come on, kids.
ground.” ground.” We're going into the
garden!”
4 5 6
At the top right of the
In the garden. The A beautiful golden light screen: “£699.99”
children are wrapped up emanates from the The children are playing
in many scarves and SunOrb and floods the happily in the bright
coats. They look at their garden with light. light.
father, who taps the The children look Across the bottom of the
SunOrb three times. amazed. screen:
“www.sunorb.co.uk”
Dad: Let's see what this Music: Hazy Shades of Voiceover: “Get sunshine
new SunOrb can do!” Winter by the Bangles all year round with the
SunOrb. Only available
online!”
Page 35
INVENTION NAME:
1 2 3
4 5 6
Page 36
Writing a Script: 1
The Discovery
Jasmine: Not for a while yet. Mum and Dad are still at work.
Jasmine: We're not supposed to answer the door when Mum and Dad
are out.
Jasmine shakes her head and carries on with her homework as Hayden leaves
the room.
Hayden (from off screen): Jasmine! Get out here! You won't believe what
I've found on the doorstep!
Page 37
Writing a Script: 2
Trapped by Snow
Exterior: A very snowy field, surrounded by snowy hills. Two children and their
mother are building a huge snowman. Snow is falling heavily.
Ava laughs.
Mum (placing a hat on the snowman's head): There. It's finished. I'll go and
get the camera from the car.
Ava: Fine. I'll use Daniel for target practice while you're gone.
Mum walks off. Ava begins throwing snowballs at Daniel, who runs round and
round the snowman to escape her.
Mum (returning): Kids, I've got bad news. So much snow has fallen that
the car is completely covered. The road is six feet deep in snow. We're
going to have to dig the car out but there's no way we can drive
anywhere before the snow melts.
Page 38
Notes for Teachers and Other Educators
The activities in this workbook centre on creativity and imagination. With this in mind, it is
important that the children are not guided too definitively. Punctuation, spelling and
grammar are not the main focus here, important as they are.
Each activity is adaptable and you may wish to change the order of activities or to select
only a few.
These are comprised of a picture and the opening sentences of a story. Children are then
invited to complete the story. You may wish to read the story opening with your students
and discuss ideas for development of the plot. It is not essential that the children use the
story opening in their own work. They may come up with their own ideas, inspired by the
picture provided. A 'Winter Story' template has been provided.
These activities include a planning sheet, which encourages students to think about
different parts of speech and language features such as onomatopoeia and metaphor.
Stimulus pictures are included in the appendix at the end of this workbook, however it is
recommended that children use their own imaginations to write their descriptions. A 'Winter
Words' template is included.
Found poetry encourages the unselfconscious use of poetic language. It does not require
rhyme, metre or rhythm and is thus very easy to write. I have included three wintery texts
in keeping with our theme. There is also a Found Poetry template.
The phrase bank may be enlarged to A3 and the children may cut out the phrases. They
may then move them around or select some at random to form their found poem.
Acrostic poems are as simple or as complex as the skills of the poet, which means they
are a perfectly differentiated activity for writers of all abilities. You may wish to provide your
lower ability students with the Winter Word Bank (page 40). Templates are included.
Ensure that your students can identify how many syllables are in a word before beginning
these activities. The beauty of haiku and tanka is the discipline required in using only a few
words. Examples are provided: please note that both types of poem focus on nature, with
an added focus on emotion in tanka. You may find it useful to write a class haiku or tanka
together, then split the children into groups to write a group haiku or tanka. Finally, children
may write individual haiku or tanka. Templates are included.
Page 39
Five-senses poems (pages 26 - 27)
These are extremely engaging poems, which children unfailingly love to write. Make sure
you run through the five senses with your students before they attempt their own version.
There is a Snowflake Planner provided, as well as a Five-Senses Template for their final
draft.
Revision and editing skills are essential and often lacking in students of all ages. This
activity asks students to fill in the gaps in The Night is Darkening Round Me by Emily
Brontë. This is a nice activity for pairs and the children should be encouraged to come up
with more than one version. There is a word bank provided on page 27, which includes the
words from the original, together with some extras. You may choose to have the children
cut the words out in order to move them around.
The original version of The Night is Darkening Round Me by Emily Brontë is included in
the appendix. It should be emphasised that the children are not being asked to guess
which are the original words: this is a creative activity in which they should select words
they feel fit the gaps.
This writing project is likely to take more than one session to complete, though different
elements may be used independently of the whole. Students must identify a 'winter-
themed' problem and come up with an invention to help address the issue. They describe
their invention via a spider diagram (this could be developed into a piece of persuasive
writing) and design a storyboard for a television/ online advert for their product. Models are
provided for each activity.
These activites could easily be extended and adapted. For example, the children could
research music appropriate to their advertisement, possibly even writing their own jingles.
Students should read through the opening lines provided and continue the script. This
activity works well in pairs and can easily be extended to embrace drama activities.
Final Notes
I hope you find this resource useful. Please do not hesitate to get in touch if you have any
feedback or queries. You may email me at info@bettertuition.co.uk or contact me via twitter
or facebook (@bettertuition).
Page 40
Appendix 1: Winter Word Bank Page 1
A E
adventure evergreens
anorak emerald
arctic
F I
B February ice
C frostbite
L
candle frosty lights
cap frozen love
chill fruitcake log
chimney
G luge
cold gale
M
cosy gingerbread merry
crackling glittering migrate
crisp gloves mince pie
crunchy gusty mistletoe
D H mittens
dark hailstones
N
December hibernate New Year
dreary holly North Pole
duvet hot chocolate nutcracker
Page 41
Appendix 1: Winter Word Bank Page 2
O snowflake
ornaments snowman
overcoat sparkle
P star
Q toasty
quilt toboggan
R tree
radiator
U
rain unwrap
red
W
reindeer warm
ribbon wassail
S white
Santa windy
scarf winter
season wintry
skate wish
sledge wrap
sleigh wreath
sleet
Y
sniffle yule log
snow
Z
snowball zero degrees
Page 42
Appendix 2: A Garden in Winter
Page 43
Appendix 2: A Log Fire
Page 44
Appendix 3: The Polar Bear
Page 45
The night is darkening round me
By Emily Bront ë
Page 46